电话：010-85195300
E-mail：cassoa@cass.org.cn
地址：中国北京建国门内大街5号中国社会科学院1#楼
扫一扫关注微信
国家哲学社会科学文献中心版权所有
Everything in moderation: now that companies have successfully slimmed down, many are in a far better position to reinvest
Lori CalabroANYONE WORRIED THAT cost-conscious companies have eliminated muscle as well as fat should take heart from the findings of our latest Cost Management Survey. [paragraph] Ever since the New Economy bubble burst, companies have diligently and methodically pruned budgets. Head counts have been reduced. Offices have been closed. Departments have been consolidated. And everything from payroll to accounts payable has either been outsourced or moved offshore. Yet until recently, companies often lacked the flexibility to cut costs in concert with declining revenues, because they didn't distinguish between fixed costs and variable ones. As a result, their moves did little to improve operating profits, as reflected in cost-to-revenue ratios. And some were left in a poor position to take advantage of new growth opportunities once conditions improved.
No longer, according to the findings of the 10th annual Cost Management Survey, a joint effort of CFO magazine and business-process consulting firm Gunn Partners that ranks the largest publicly traded North American companies (those with revenues of at least $750 million per year from 1998 through 2002) according to their five-year cost management index (CMI). After turning up in 2001, the median CMI--calculated by adding a company's cost of goods sold to its selling, general, and administrative (SG&A) expenses and dividing the sum by operating revenue--fell in 2002, according to Gunn.
In fact, the survey found that the median CMI was 83 percent that year, compared with 87 percent in 2001 and 85.3 percent in 2000. And over five years, companies recorded a CMI of 82.5, compared with 85.7 last year.
While companies have long cut costs in the face of weak demand, Calvin Yee, a director with Houston-based Gunn, says those efforts have only recently achieved significant savings in fixed costs in SG&A. Essentially, he says, companies have at last put a moratorium on "overhead spending for the sake of it." And that has produced a "more-flexible cost base." As a consequence, says Yee, companies are now better able to seek the rewards of judicious investing. After all, he notes, "not all costs are bad at the end of the day."
PICKING THEIR SPOTS
Nowhere is the new focus more apparent than at once-profligate Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., which now sports a five-year CMI of 45 percent, compared with an industry median of 78 percent. That, says CFO Dan Taylor, reflects "some pretty dramatic changes at the company." Following the naming of Alex Yemenidjian to the roles of chairman and CEO in 1999, for example, head count was reduced by 10 percent and independent distribution of films through United International Pictures ended in favor of self-distribution, a move that "turned a fixed cost into a variable [cost]," says Taylor. The result, he explains, is that overhead (including fees) as a percent of revenue was reduced from 27 percent in 1997 to between 11 and 12 percent in 2003, where, he says, "it will stay for the foreseeable future."
Now, says Taylor, MGM, which Time Warner Inc. is rumored to be interested in acquiring, is not "looking for further cost reductions," and is ready to invest in new opportunities. Still, any new investment must work "within that [overhead] framework," he insists. "We are not going to throw money at the wrong places." His spending criteria, for example, include a 13 percent internal rate of return for any new film projects.
In telecom, another industry known for lavish spending, the leanest operators have also focused on fixed costs to help exploit growth opportunities. Chicago-based U.S. Cellular Corp., for example, completed a nationwide billing system last year that was largely responsible for a $25 million savings in SG&A in the third quarter of 2003. That, despite an already low CMI in 2002 of 68 percent, compared with an overall industry average of 81. Meanwhile, however, U.S. Cellular is entering the final year of an approximate $400 million upgrade to its network. Says Meyers: "We have to balance out revenue-generating and our cost-related projects."
That balance is also evident at American Axle & Manufacturing Inc., which recorded one of the automotive industry's greatest improvements in five-year CMI, reducing it by 721 basis points. "If you don't focus on taking costs out, you'll get burned by other factors," says executive vice president of finance and CFO Robin J. Adams, who is committed to holding all costs steady--except for an annual R&D increase of 10 percent. Still, says Adams, the key to AAM's business "is the ability to replace the new product portfolio." And that requires constant investment in new technology and the maintenance of quality equipment. "We are committed to never cutting our product technology," he says.
Even for utilities, cuts in fixed costs go hand in hand with growth initiatives. Consider $ 6 billion Sempra Energy, a product of the merger between Pacific Enterprises and Enova Corp. in 1998. Granted, the company's five-year CMI of 38 percent, compared with the industry median of 64 percent, reflects the basis for the merger, which projected cost savings totaling some $1.2 billion over 10 years. At the same time, says executive vice president and CFO Neal Schmale, Sempra, because of its two California utilities, is also beholden to the regulatory process, which "is very rigorous in terms of cost justification."
Yet while Schmale says that cost control will remain a priority in 2004, it will also work to complete two LNG (liquefied natural gas) facilities to grow the unregulated side of its business. For Sempra, as for all companies, says Gunn's Yee, the question is "how to prudently make investments in a way that is scalable and not a huge financial commitment:' But as this year's Cost Management Survey shows, a growing number of companies besides Sempra now at least have the wherewithal to consider the question.
Industry Waistlines
How the CMI compares in
40 industries, 1998-2002.
INDUSTRY BENCHMARKS *
'98-'02 Cost Mgmnt.
Industry Median (in %)
Advertising, Media & Publishing 77.9
Aerospace & Defense 86.6
Airlines 74.7
Autos & Auto-parts Manufacturers 89.1
Beverages 85.6
Building Materials 86.5
Chemicals 84.8
Computer Software & Services 81.0
Computer Systems & Peripherals 90.2
Construction & Housing 90.2
Consumer Services 75.4
Cosmetics & Personal Care 85.3
Diversified Financial Services 85.2
Diversified Services 89.7
Drugs & Biotechnology 75.0
Electronics & Semiconductors 80.6
Electrical Equipment & Components 86.3
Factory Equipment & Heavy Machinery 87.8
Food & Food Products 90.7
Food Retailers 93.6
Forest Products 86.4
Health-care Providers 95.4
Home Furnishings 88.5
Insurance 89.4
Leisure, Entertainment & Restaurants 73.1
Medical Devices 78.1
Steels, Metals & Mining 88.7
Manufacturing 84.7
Oil & Gas 77.3
Real Estate 42.0
Retail Banking 58.9
Retailers 93.9
Retailers--Specialty 92.7
Retailers--Apparel 89.0
Shipping, Railroads & Air Transport 85.5
Telecommunication Services 81.3
Telecommunication Equipment 85.9
Textiles, Apparel & Footwear 89.2
Tobacco 91.1
Utilities 64.4
Median 82.5
* CMI = (COGS + SG&A) / revenues
Source: Gunn Partners
BELT TIGHTENING Leading cost
containers in 40 industries, 1998-2002.
ALL VALUES ARE % OF OPERATING REVENUE *
'98-'02
2002 2002 2002 CMI
Company COGS SG&A CMI (1) Avg. (2)
ADVERTISING, MEDIA & PUBLISHING
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 15 41 56 45
Hollinger International 46 0 46 47
Knight-Ridder 52 0 52 54
Charter Communications 40 21 61 57
Cox Communications 28 22 51 59
Industry Median 51 25 78 78
AEROSPACE & DEFENSE
Goodrich 69 14 83 82
Precision Castparts 73 9 83 83
Alliant Techsystems 74 9 83 85
Northrop Grumman 79 10 89 85
L3 Communications Holdings 83 4 87 86
Industry Median 78 10 87 87
AIRLINES
Southwest Airlines 67 0 67 57
America West Holdings 43 31 74 66
Northwest Airlines 32 49 81 67
Continental Airlines 74 0 74 71
US Airways Group 25 53 78 73
Industry Median 58 1 78 75
AUTOS & AUTO-PARTS MANUFACTURERS
Ford Motor 74 6 80 77
General Motors 74 13 87 84
Wabtec 71 18 90 85
Cooper Tire & Rubber 80 7 87 86
Borgwarner 75 11 86 86
Industry Median 80 9 91 89
BEVERAGES
Adolph Coors 59 28 87 88
Coca-Cola 32 36 68 70
Anheuser-Busch 54 18 72 73
Brown-Forman 39 39 78 78
PepsiCo 42 34 76 79
Industry Median 54 30 85 86
BUILDING MATERIALS
Martin Marietta Materials 71 8 79 75
Vulcan Materials 71 8 80 76
Lafarge North America 72 10 82 79
Masco 66 16 82 82
Texas Industries 77 8 85 84
Industry Median 72 15 88 87
CHEMICALS
Praxair 58 16 74 74
Sigma Aldrich 44 30 73 74
Air Products & Chemicals 60 15 75 75
Int'l Flavours & Fragrances 53 25 78 77
Albemarle 68 13 81 78
Industry Median 73 15 87 85
COMPUTER SOFTWARE & SERVICES
Microsoft 15 37 52 47
Intuit 17 45 62 66
Veritas Software 8 61 69 67
Oracle 21 38 59 67
BMC Software 7 80 88 68
Industry Median 20 57 77 18
COMPUTER SYSTEMS & PERIPHERALS
EMC 50 45 95 79
Network Appliance 34 56 90 81
IBM 58 26 84 82
Quantum 56 33 90 84
Lexmark Int'l Group A 65 20 85 85
Industry Median 65 25 92 90
CONSTRUCTION & HOUSING
Clayton Homes 46 34 80 79
Walter Industries 72 10 82 80
Toll Brothers 72 10 82 84
Dycom Industries 77 14 91 85
Lennar 75 11 86 87
Industry Median 82 10 90 90
CONSUMER SERVICES
Dollar Thrifty Automotive 34 16 49 48
Cendant 44 18 62 54
H&R Block 53 8 61 65
United Rentals 57 16 73 68
Apollo Group 46 25 71 75
Industry Median 57 16 73 75
COSMETICS & PERSONAL CARE
Gillette 35 36 72 73
Playtex Products 44 33 77 78
Avon Products 36 48 84 85
Estee Lauder 23 63 87 85
Alberto Culver 49 40 89 90
Industry Median 36 44 85 85
DIVERSIFIED FINANCIAL SERVICES
T. Rowe Price Group * * 66 64
Greenpoint Financial * * 56 67
Comerica * * 74 71
Golden West Financial * * 59 71
Alliance Cap. Mgmnt Hldgs * * 77 74
Industry Median 83 85
DIVERSIFIED SERVICES
Moody's 28 17 44 55
Comdisco 25 25 50 59
Equifax 39 23 61 67
IMS Health 40 25 64 67
American Mgmnt Systs 55 34 89 72
Industry Median 74 17 91 90
DRUGS & BIOTECHNOLOGY
Amgen 8 47 55 52
King Pharmaceuticals 19 34 53 53
Biogen 10 60 70 62
Genentech 12 45 57 62
Watson Pharmaceuticals 43 26 68 63
Industry Median 24 42 72 75
ELECTRONICS & SEMICONDUCTORS
Maxim Integrated Products 25 36 61 54
Intel 32 31 63 59
Altera 30 49 80 70
Xilinx 49 43 91 71
Analog Devices 36 39 75 72
Industry Median 50 35 88 81
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT & COMPONENTS
Waters 38 34 72 71
3M 45 29 74 76
Pall 45 38 83 79
Illinois Tool Works 63 18 81 80
Emerson Electric 61 21 82 80
Industry Median 68 20 88 86
FACTORY EQUIPMENT & HEAVY MACHINERY
Caterpillar 67 16 83 83
Deere 69 16 85 84
Sauer-Danfoss 69 17 87 85
Manitowoc 74 14 89 86
JLG Industries 80 12 92 87
Industry Median 74 15 90 88
FOOD & FOOD PRODUCTS
Campbell Soup 52 26 78 76
Wm. Wrigley Jr. 39 36 75 76
Sensient Technologies 63 17 80 79
H.J. Heinz 61 18 80 80
Kellogg 51 27 78 80
Industry Median 76 12 90 91
FOOD RETAILERS
7-Eleven 68 20 87 89
Pantry 81 15 96 89
Safeway Income 66 24 90 90
Whole Foods Market 62 29 91 91
Albertsons 71 21 92 92
Industry Median 71 22 95 94
FOREST PRODUCTS
Rayonier 70 4 74 74
Bowater 78 14 92 81
Longview Fibre 75 10 85 83
Meadwestvaco 75 11 86 85
Weyerhaeuser 78 8 87 85
Industry Median 78 8 89 86
HEALTH-CARE PROVIDERS
HCA 56 8 64 64
Triad Hospitals 57 10 67 67
US Oncology 73 4 77 74
Renal Care Group 65 11 77 77
Davita 66 10 75 78
Industry Median 81 11 93 95
HOME FURNISHINGS
Ethan Allen Interiors 51 32 83 81
Leggett & Platt 77 9 86 85
Herman Miller 62 30 92 86
Hon Industries 60 27 87 87
Mohawk Industries 70 16 86 88
Industry Median 70 20 90 89
INSURANCE
Erie Indemnity * * 72 72
MONY Group * * 96 73
Jefferson Pilot * * 76 74
Torchmark * * 75 76
Old Republic International * * 79 80
Industry Median * * 91 89
LEISURE, ENTERTAINENT & RESTAURANTS
Harrahs Entertainment 51 1 52 52
McDonald's 19 37 56 56
Yum Brands 22 36 58 60
Hilton Hotels 65 0 65 60
Outback Steakhouse 61 4 64 64
Industry Median 54 14 72 73
MEDICAL SERVICES
Medtronic 21 41 61 62
Guidant 21 44 65 64
Biomet 24 41 65 66
Apogent Technologies 46 24 70 70
Zimmer Holdings 23 46 69 70
Industry Median 47 31 79 78
STEELS, METALS & MINING
Newmont Mining 62 4 67 68
Alcoa 80 7 87 84
Carpenter Technology 75 15 90 85
Tredegar Industries 75 11 85 85
Nucor 84 41 87 86
Industry Median 84 6 91 89
MANUFACTURING
General Electric 36 9 45 48
Gemstar TV Guide Int'l 88 2 90 63
Owens Illinois 70 6 77 75
Molex 55 25 80 77
Temple Inland 67 7 74 77
Industry Median 69 16 86 85
OIL & GAS
Apache 18 6 24 26
XTO Energy 17 8 25 27
EOG Resources 25 8 33 28
Devon Energy 33 5 38 30
Ocean Energy 27 6 32 31
Industry Median 66 6 78 77
REAL ESTATE
Equity Office Properties Trust 10 14 24 22
General Growth Properties 30 1 31 32
Boston Properties 34 4 38 33
Public Storage 35 2 37 38
Equity Residential 29 2 31 40
Industry Median 35 15 45 42
RETAIL BANKING
Associated Bancorp * * 52% 54%
Bank of America * * 52% 55%
Bank of Hawaii * * 62% 64%
Bank One * * 56% 64%
Banknorth Group * * 52% 54%
Industry Median * * 58% 59%
RETAILERS
American Greetings 34 54 88 86
Officemax 73 24 98 98
CDW 86 6 93 93
Compucom Systems 87 10 97 98
Insight Enterprises 88 9 96 96
Industry Median 74 18 94 94
RETAILERS--SPECIALTY
Blockbuster 24 47 71 73
Hollywood Entertainment 20 49 69 75
Tiffany 41 36 71 79
Petsmart 68 4 72 82
RadioShack 67 19 86 86
Industry Median 71 22 93 93
RETAILERS--APPAREL
Abercrombie & Fitch 55 22 77 76
Claire's Stores 49 35 84 83
American Eagle Outfitters 63 24 87 84
Gap 61 27 88 85
May Department Stores 66 22 88 85
Industry Median 63 26 89 89
SHIPPING, RAILROADS & AIR TRANSPORT
Union Pacific 24 36 60 63
Burlington North, Santa Fe 39 32 71 68
J.B. Hunt Transport. Svcs 36 5 41 70
FedEx 29 45 74 71
Swift 76 8 84 72
Industry Median 72 12 86 85
TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES
U.S. Cellular 31 40 71 68
Cincinnati Bell 48 23 72 71
Sprint 45 25 70 72
Western Wireless 40 33 73 73
Quest Communications 46 34 80 74
Industry Median 48 28 76 81
TELECOMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT
Crown Castle Int'l 49 12 61 63
American Tower 57 4 60 68
Qualcomm 33 32 65 72
Tellabs 45 48 93 75
Cisco Systems 30 44 73 75
Industry Median 61 31 93 86
TEXTILES, APPAREL & FOOTWEAR
Jones Apparel Group 60 24 83 83
Polo Ralph Lauren 48 35 83 84
Timberland 55 32 86 85
VF 62 24 86 85
Unifi 83 6 89 86
Industry Median 62 24 89 89
TOBACCO
Reynolds Tobacco Hldngs 17 24 40 60
Altria Group 50 20 70 73
Universal 78 12 90 91
Dimon 80 9 89 92
Standard Commercial 81 8 89 94
Industry Median 78 12 89 91
UTILITIES
Sempra Energy 40 0 40 38
Great Plains Energy 47 5 52 40
Louisville Gas & Electric 45 0 45 42
Dominion Resources 33 21 54 45
Dayton Power and Light 40 0 40 45
Industry Median 50 6 62 64
'98-'02 '98-'02
CMI Revenue
Company Change (3) Growth (4)
ADVERTISING, MEDIA & PUBLISHING
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 1,339 7
Hollinger International (179) -18
Knight-Ridder (395) -2
Charter Communications (214) 14
Cox Communications (1,081) 31
Industry Median 45 5
AEROSPACE & DEFENSE
Goodrich (29) 0
Precision Castparts (169) 18
Alliant Techsystems (381) 14
Northrop Grumman 366 18
L3 Communications Holdings 28 40
Industry Median 26 2
AIRLINES
Southwest Airlines 600 7
America West Holdings 914 0
Northwest Airlines 845 1
Continental Airlines (1,210) 1
US Airways Group 970 -5
Industry Median 845 1
AUTOS & AUTO-PARTS MANUFACTURERS
Ford Motor 676 3
General Motors 255 4
Wabtec 887 1
Cooper Tire & Rubber 353 15
Borgwarner (56) 10
Industry Median 248 5
BEVERAGES
Adolph Coors (12) 18
Coca-Cola (180) 1
Anheuser-Busch (274) 5
Brown-Forman (26) 4
PepsiCo (578) 3
Industry Median (274) 6
BUILDING MATERIALS
Martin Marietta Materials 699 9
Vulcan Materials 703 12
Lafarge North America 507 7
Masco 94 21
Texas Industries 377 3
Industry Median 245 6
CHEMICALS
Praxair 62 1
Sigma Aldrich (95) 0
Air Products & Chemicals 189 2
Int'l Flavours & Fragrances 339 6
Albemarle 584 5
Industry Median 295 2
COMPUTER SOFTWARE & SERVICES
Microsoft 709 18
Intuit (256) 23
Veritas Software (236) 63
Oracle (1,632) 8
BMC Software 3,688 15
Industry Median 365 11
COMPUTER SYSTEMS & PERIPHERALS
EMC 2,521 8
Network Appliance 1,342 48
IBM 92 -0
Quantum (368) -34
Lexmark Int'l Group A 5 10
Industry Median 3,341 -0
CONSTRUCTION & HOUSING
Clayton Homes 91 2
Walter Industries 429 1
Toll Brothers (325) 18
Dycom Industries 374 14
Lennar (114) 32
Industry Median (114) 16
CONSUMER SERVICES
Dollar Thrifty Automotive 230 6
Cendant 1,615 28
H&R Block (490) 26
United Rentals 569 23
Apollo Group (711) 27
Industry Median 569 23
COSMETICS & PERSONAL CARE
Gillette (61) -4
Playtex Products 85 2
Avon Products (223) 4
Estee Lauder 59 7
Alberto Culver (86) 10
Industry Median (1) 3
DIVERSIFIED FINANCIAL SERVICES
T. Rowe Price Group (6,616) 1
Greenpoint Financial (5,576) 14
Comerica (7,411) 3
Golden West Financial (5,862) 5
Alliance Cap. Mgmnt Hldgs (7,654) 20
Industry Median (8,299) 9
DIVERSIFIED SERVICES
Moody's (2,506) -15
Comdisco (3,258) -19
Equifax (996) -9
IMS Health (961) 5
American Mgmnt Systs 2,392 -2
Industry Median 111 5
DRUGS & BIOTECHNOLOGY
Amgen 395 19
King Pharmaceuticals (754) 64
Biogen 825 20
Genentech (1,952) 25
Watson Pharmaceuticals 1,106 22
Industry Median (159) 13
ELECTRONICS & SEMICONDUCTORS
Maxim Integrated Products 904 16
Intel 626 0
Altera 1,953 2
Xilinx 2,507 13
Analog Devices (101) 9
Industry Median 626 2
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT & COMPONENTS
Waters (181) 10
3M (311) 2
Pall 450 4
Illinois Tool Works 385 14
Emerson Electric 268 1
Industry Median 243 3
FACTORY EQUIPMENT & HEAVY MACHINERY
Caterpillar (5) -1
Deere 825 0
Sauer-Danfoss 308 14
Manitowoc 410 19
JLG Industries 910 10
Industry Median 259 5
FOOD & FOOD PRODUCTS
Campbell Soup 470 -2
Wm. Wrigley Jr. (143) 8
Sensient Technologies 22 2
H.J. Heinz (47) 1
Kellogg (407) 5
Industry Median (41) 3
FOOD RETAILERS
7-Eleven (868) 4
Pantry 1,603 26
Safeway Income (113) 7
Whole Foods Market (18) 18
Albertsons 85 22
Industry Median (24) 5
FOREST PRODUCTS
Rayonier (418) 3
Bowater 1,686 7
Longview Fibre 11 1
Meadwestvaco 357 18
Weyerhaeuser 66 15
Industry Median 74 7
HEALTH-CARE PROVIDERS
HCA (73) 1
Triad Hospitals 822 26
US Oncology 666 38
Renal Care Group (133) 25
Davita 133 11
Industry Median 8 13
HOME FURNISHINGS
Ethan Allen Interiors 266 7
Leggett & Platt 280 6
Herman Miller 710 4
Hon Industries 72 -0
Mohawk Industries (229) 14
Industry Median 266 5
INSURANCE
Erie Indemnity (7,191) 12
MONY Group (9,621) 4
Jefferson Pilot (7,603) 9
Torchmark (7,516) 6
Old Republic International (7,933) 6
Industry Median (9,054) 7
LEISURE, ENTERTAINENT & RESTAURANTS
Harrahs Entertainment 2 20
McDonald's 913 6
Yum Brands (396) -2
Hilton Hotels (133) 21
Outback Steakhouse 134 15
Industry Median (205) 8
MEDICAL SERVICES
Medtronic 38 25
Guidant 183 14
Biomet (402) 16
Apogent Technologies (74) 3
Zimmer Holdings (16) 12
Industry Median (45) 8
STEELS, METALS & MINING
Newmont Mining 196 16
Alcoa 414 7
Carpenter Technology 924 -5
Tredegar Industries 172 1
Nucor 349 4
Industry Median 414 1
MANUFACTURING
General Electric (1,172) 7
Gemstar TV Guide Int'l 4,408 68
Owens Illinois 222 2
Molex 517 1
Temple Inland (1,575) 5
Industry Median 91 3
OIL & GAS
Apache (1,820) 31
XTO Energy (1,281) 34
EOG Resources (131) 11
Devon Energy (77) 83
Ocean Energy (667) 22
Industry Median 35 13
REAL ESTATE
Equity Office Properties Trust 8 20
General Growth Properties (1,908) 23
Boston Properties 1,703 25
Public Storage (323) 11
Equity Residential (2,282) 11
Industry Median 18 20
RETAIL BANKING
Associated Bancorp (5,190) 2%
Bank of America (5,159) -3%
Bank of Hawaii (6,223) -14%
Bank One (5,639) -3%
Banknorth Group (5,214) 17%
Industry Median (5,802) 4%
RETAILERS
American Greetings 462 2
Officemax 335 2
CDW (105) 25
Compucom Systems (82) -9
Insight Enterprises 24 30
Industry Median 7 16
RETAILERS--SPECIALTY
Blockbuster 1,202 9
Hollywood Entertainment 344 18
Tiffany (706) 10
Petsmart (2,321) 6
RadioShack (523) -1
Industry Median 69 12
RETAILERS--APPAREL
Abercrombie & Fitch (12) 18
Claire's Stores 389 11
American Eagle Outfitters 318 26
Gap 592 12
May Department Stores 407 0
Industry Median 121 7
SHIPPING, RAILROADS & AIR TRANSPORT
Union Pacific (777) 4
Burlington North, Santa Fe 463 0
J.B. Hunt Transport. Svcs (4,571) 5
FedEx 464 7
Swift 1,999 25
Industry Median 115 4
TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES
U.S. Cellular 399 17
Cincinnati Bell 683 24
Sprint (99) -1
Western Wireless (2,074) 19
Quest Communications (718) 62
Industry Median (718) 25
TELECOMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT
Crown Castle Int'l (585) 68
American Tower (413) 66
Qualcomm (2,359) -2
Tellabs 2,946 -6
Cisco Systems 915 22
Industry Median 816 -2
TEXTILES, APPAREL & FOOTWEAR
Jones Apparel Group 1 27
Polo Ralph Lauren (119) 13
Timberland (46) 8
VF 113 -2
Unifi 784 -10
Industry Median 16 1
TOBACCO
Reynolds Tobacco Hldngs (2,979)
Altria Group (292) 2
Universal (253) 2
Dimon (252) -13
Standard Commercial (653) -11
Industry Median (292) -11
UTILITIES
Sempra Energy 515 2
Great Plains Energy 560 19
Louisville Gas & Electric 605 5
Dominion Resources 1,576 14
Dayton Power and Light (970) -2
Industry Median 168 6
* Except for '98-'02 CMI change, which is expressed in basis points.
(1) CMI = (COGS+SG&A) / revenue. For Financial Services and Insurance,
CMI = total operating expenses / revenue (total operating expenses =
SG&A + COGS without interest expense adjustments). For Banking, CMI =
(noninterest expense) / (net interest expense income + noninterest
income). (2) Avg. CMI for '98-'02 (3) Nominal change in CMI '98-'02
(4) Compound annual growth in revenue.
Analysis performed by Gunn Partners. Data source: ThomsonFinancial
COST MANAGEMENT METHODOLOGY
How the survey was done.
For the 10th annual Cost Management Survey, CFO magazine again teamed with Gunn Partners, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Exult Inc. This year's survey sample is based on North American publicly traded companies that reported at least $750 million in revenue annually for the years 1998 through 2002. Companies that were acquired or went bankrupt during those years were eliminated, as were foreign companies that offer American Depositary Receipts (ADRs), companies with incomplete data, and statistical outliers.
The result was that more than 1,000 companies in 40 industry groups were ranked according to their five-year cost management index, which equals cost of goods sold plus selling, general, and administrative costs (before depreciation and amortization), divided by operating revenue. The data was supplied by ThomsonFinancial.
Only U.S.-based companies are listed in these charts. For complete results of the Cost Management Survey, including foreign companies with ADRs, go to www.cfo.com.
LORI CALABRO (LORICALABRO@CFO.COM) IS A DEPUTY EDITOR OF CFO.
COPYRIGHT 2004 CFO Publishing Corp.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group